MOSCOW, July 8 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's second-largest mobile phone operator, VimpelCom, said Tuesday it had signed an agreement on setting up a joint venture in Vietnam.
Under the deal, VimpelCom will receive a 40% stake in the JV, GTEL-Mobile, while Vietnam's Global Telecommunications Corporation (GTEL) and its subsidiary GTEL-TSC will have 51% and 9%, respectively, the company said.
"With a population of 86 million and a fast growing economy, the Vietnamese market holds great promise for VimpelCom and we believe that the GTEL-Mobile growth dynamics make it an ideal place for us to begin building our international growth platform," CEO Alexander Izosimov said.
VimpelCom, which operates in Russia under the Beeline brand, said its initial investment in the JV would amount to $267 million.